A New Orleans doctor spent months trying to get deepfake…

Dr. Maurice Sholas, a pediatric physician in New Orleans, discovered his likeness was being used in deepfake advertisements for K2D3 vitamin supplements. The unauthorized videos depicted him in a lab coat, using AI-altered audio to endorse the product to Black viewers.

What happened

An acquaintance alerted Dr. Sholas to a TikTok video featuring his face and voice, which had been generated by running clips from his real videos through AI software. The scammers targeted Black audiences specifically, claiming the supplements were necessary based on race. At least one person known to Dr. Sholas purchased the product based on these fraudulent endorsements.

When Dr. Sholas attempted to report the content, the account holders did not remove the videos. Instead, they edited them to slightly alter his facial features and teeth to evade detection. TikTok initially ignored his reports, leading Sholas to remark that he lacked the PR resources to garner platform attention. The videos were only removed after a journalist from a local TV station contacted the platform for comment. By that time, the content had already spread to Instagram and X.

Dr. Sholas faced significant hurdles navigating platform reporting tools, which are generally designed for traditional impersonation rather than AI-generated likenesses. He even paid for a verified checkmark on the advice of a lawyer, hoping it would increase the weight of his reports, but the effort proved ineffective. The scammers eventually blocked him from viewing their accounts. While professional reputation management firms offered to handle the takedowns, they quoted fees between $9,000 and $20,000 for their services. The incident highlights the legal and platform-specific gaps for ordinary individuals, as most existing right-of-publicity laws and AI-protection legislation are currently tailored toward celebrities, performers, or intimate imagery.